Orange/reddish light moving at an incredible speed through the night sky.

About 11:30 pm on March 2, 2008, I observed a orange/reddish light moving in a northeasterly direction over the city of Gretna, Louisiana. The time and date is memorable because it was my birthday and my wife and I were visiting New Orleans to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary and my 65th birthday.

The light that I observed was unusual because it proceeded across the night sky at a remarkable speed…taking less than a few seconds to pass overhead and disappear in the night glare of downtown New Orleans. By comparison, moments after the light disappeared, a commercial airliner moved across the sky at a snail’s pace.

The size of the light was comparable to lights one might see on an airplane, not particularly bright but not flashing or changing in color. If at the altitude of normal air traffic, the light would have been moving much faster than the speed of sound. If at a lower altitude, one would have expected a horrendous noise (as from jet fighter plane) but no sound was heard.

The light was definitely not a meteor or a satellite. A meteor would not have moved that slowly and a satellite would not have moved that rapidly. No sparks, contrail, or trailing illumination was observed.

I have watched the night sky all my life and never witnessed anything similar to this rapidly moving light.